


Damned If You Don't

by live_from_new_york



Category: Ghostbusters (2016)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Teachers, Alternate Universe- No Supernatural, F/F, Happy Ending, Science Girlfriends
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-20
Updated: 2016-07-20
Packaged: 2018-07-25 17:44:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,062
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7542022
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/live_from_new_york/pseuds/live_from_new_york
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"You've taught here for a month now, do you think she's noticed you staring at her everyday between classes?"</p>
<p>Abby and Patty take to scheming, but Abby isn't very good at keeping secrets. As a result, Erin is left literally picking up the pieces.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Damned If You Don't

**Author's Note:**

> This is the High School Teacher AU that no one asked for.   
> Our ladies all work at the same school, but it's Erin's first year there. 
> 
> A special thank you to Myah and tumblr user hltzmnn for their support and help in getting this out. This is for you ladies!
> 
> Also- I'm worried the formatting didn't translate well when I imported this, so if anyone has any trouble with it, just let me know.

"Aw, man... Not again." Erin sighed, bringing her hands up to rub her temples. "I _just_ had this jacket dry cleaned..." She raised her left arm, looking again to examine the offending stain of green ink across her tan sleeve. Looking at the clock, she realized begrudgingly that it had been almost an hour, and her students would most likely start arriving soon, so she definitely didn't have time to find a change of clothes.

 

Unlike her current outfit, Erin Gilbert's side of the classroom was nothing short of pristine, a place for everything, and everything in its place. Students often joked that the partitions seperating the physics labs were unnecessary, because you can almost see a line where her classroom ended, and her coworker Abby Yates' began. Each of Erin's walls were adorned with corner to corner whiteboards, that she took great pride and comfort in cleaning each day after school- only to come in the next morning and litter her work over every available surface. Her side of the lab was meticulously organized, and aside from Abby's occasional interference, it managed to stay that way.

 It was no secret that she was a woman of tradition and routine. She did her hair the same way every day, and she always brought the same meal for lunch. Her students by now, a month into her first year at this particular school, knew exactly what to expect from each and every lesson.

 

The only thing about her job she didn't try to predict was the shop teacher across the hall. As if right on cue, a loud crash startled Erin, causing her to jump minutely in her nude heels, and toss her expo marker up into the air. Looking out the window of her door to the room across the hall from her, Erin saw the cause behind the noise immediately and smiled to herself. She really should be annoyed. She loves order, routines,  _safety_. Not the crazed and manic behavior that occurs every day less than fifty feet away from her. But Erin honestly couldn't help herself. Every time there was an explosion or crash or the like, she would look out the window and through the open door to see her coworker Jillian Holtzmann survey the damage that she's done this time.  And each time unfailingly, Holtzmann catches Erin's eye and gives her a delicious wink. 

Today is no different from any other day, and Erin's heart thumps wildly at Jillian's easy flirtations. Holtzmann turns and walks off, swinging a crowbar behind her back, but Erin can't bring herself to look away from the strange beauty across the hall. Holtzmann was covered daily in some strange mixture of soot and ash, and she always wore overalls when she worked in the shop, but Erin at the moment couldn't think of anything she'd found more endearing than the smirk on her face and the swing in her hips. 

 

"Knock knock, I'm coming in!" 

Erin whipped around, almost slipping on the linoleum beneath her feet. Abby smiled from where she stood, her head poking out from between the partitions handles.

"Abby! I told you not scare me like that!"

"Well, sorry." She apologized sarcastically, making her way over to Erin's desk. "It's not my fault you were in Holtzmann land again."

Erin's eyes widened and she slapped softly at Abby's shoulder, "Don't say that! I was not." She whispered, her voice both harsh and embarrassed all at once.

Abby moved to stand where Erin had been just moments earlier, and looked across into Holtzmann's open classroom. It was in times like these that Erin wished Abby wasn't quite so straightforward. Her honesty was brutal, and her distinct lack of a filter was due to land her in some very hot water any minute now. The last thing Erin wanted was to be dragged into that when the time came around.

"You've taught here for a month now, do you think she's noticed you staring at her everyday between classes yet?" Abby said, looking up to meet Erin's eyes. 

"Abby..." Erin moaned, laying her face in her hands, "Please don't do this. Not now. My first period will be here any minute."  
"I'm just saying! Come sit with me today at lunch, I always eat with her, now's your chance to really meet her. And you need to stop eating lunch in your classroom, it's just sad."

 

At 12:15 that afternoon, Erin waved her last student of the morning out the door. "Bye Shaun! Don't forget about chapter 6 tonight, okay?" 

Shaun gave her a smile and wave back as he left, and Erin remembered again why she loved teaching so much. She spent her lunch periods and her after school hours tutoring every student she could. If she could have her students leave her class feeling even slightly more confident in their physics abilities, then she could go home knowing the day had been a success. 

These reasons, along with her crushing fear of embarrassing herself by getting caught staring at Holtzmann, are the main reasons Erin avoids going to the teachers lounge again today. She knows she should get out and meet more of her coworkers outside of her own department... But today is most definitely not the day. 

As she eats her daily lunch- consisting of a berry salad and some veggie chips- Erin lets her mind wander. There are worse things she could be doing than daydreaming about her coworkers, right? It's somehow been a month and Erin's never properly introduced herself, so the real question is whether or not it's too late to do that. In her head, she imagines the introduction would go something like this.

 

_Erin wipes down the whiteboard after a long day of teaching. There's a knock at the door, and when she turns around she sees Jillian there giving her a once over._

_"You seem tense." Holtzmann says. Her gloved hand reaches out for Erin's, "Holtzmann, Jillian Holtzmann."_

(In her daydreams, Erin is much more confident in her charm and always manages to respond smoothly- which might be the most striking difference between her fantasy and real life.) 

_Erin's hand reaches out- calm (not shaking) and firm (no sweaty palms), and smiles happily at the blonde. "Nice to finally meet you, Jillian. I've heard a lot about you."_

_"You can call me Holtzmann, or Holtz since I like you already." the younger woman says with a wink._

_"Well, Holtz... What can I do for you?"_

_"I think the real question here, Erin, is what I can do for you. You may not know this, but I have some unique... methods... for stress relief." A ravenous grin grows across Jillian's face and it wouldn't matter how smooth dream-Erin was, electricity shoots through her body and her ears start to ring._   _Before dream-Erin knows what's happening, Holtzmann has her up against one of her  less-decorated whiteboards, and the formulas on it began to disappear against Erin's back into the fabric of her blazer._

_Erin's hands are in Jillian's curls, and Jillian's hands have pulled Erin's blouse from it's place in her skirt, her nails scratching lightly against the skin of Erin's stomach. They slowly but surely maneuver their way towards Erin's desk, lips never once breaking contact, until Holtzmann lifts the taller woman onto her organized desk. Her teeth scrape against the hollow of Erin's neck and then Erin's breath hitches in her throat._

_"Holtzmann, I-"_  
"Hey Gilbert, you there?"

Erin's body twitches to life with one big spasm, as though she's been caught sleeping in class. _Probably a good thing, too..._  Erin thinks to herself, blush raging as she tries not to remember what she'd been thinking about. 

"Um-hi, hello, yes. What- what can I do for you?" She's almost certain that if her blush wasn't already giving her away, her stutter would be more than enough to implicate Erin of her crimes. 

"My name's Patty- Patty Tolan? I teach upstairs and one hall over. I met you for minute back during one of the staff meetings. Your girl Abby recommended you to me."

"Abby recommended me for.. what exactly?"

"One of my kids is tryna start a team for this year's Academic Decathalon. The theme's gonna be WWII, one of my specialties if I do say so myself," Patty smirked and Erin couldn't help but smile at her enthusiasm, "But I don't know nothin' bout half of these subjects. Economics, science, math... So I figured I'd work to recruit some of y'all! I asked Abby but the decathalon's the same weekend as her and Holtzy's robotics tournament, so she sent me here to you."

Erin's heart fluttered at the mention of the woman across the hall and she has to actively work to keep her mind from drifting back to what she'd been thinking about earlier. 

"What kind of... um. What kind of things would you need me to do?"

"It's real easy, I'd be in charge of most of it, but we're gonna meet every other week til April to prep. We got material on, uh-" Patty noticed Erin wasn't really listening to her anymore, and that she was instead focused on something distinctly blonde outside of her classroom. "Oppenheimer? Manhattan Project? I mean, if that interests you."

"Yep, yes definitely, I will- I will be there." 

"Man- Abby was _not_ kidding, you got it bad. Girl, you ain't even been in her classroom yet!"

Erin's eyes widened, "Abby said  _what?"_ Her hands went to her temples as she tried to control her anxious reaction. "I can't believe this! Oh my God, I'm going to  _kill_  her!"

"Woah there- all I'm sayin' is you're being a little obvious. Don't worry about it too much though babe, it's all good. Anyways- here's the info on the Decathalon, I'll see you there next Wednesday?"

"Yes- I will most definitely be there." 

 

Patty leaves Erin's classroom and looks at Abby who had been waiting patiently for her outside of Erin's door, "Do you see what I mean, Patty?" Abby said excitedly, a plan cooking in her head. 

"Yeah, girl, I see it. We have  _got_  to do something about this."

 

That's how Holtzmann finds herself that night, seated in a booth next to Patty, watching happily as Abby takes yet another shot. "Woooooo! School is back in session baby!" Patty hollers, laughing as Abby shakes her head, trying to sort through the buzz in her head. 

"Patty- we are well into October. You do know that right?" Holtzmann says with a grin. 

"Girl, shaddup. You know we just came her for a good time!"

"That and some," Abby burped quietly, "-good old fashioned scheming." She laughed to herself, shaking her head.

Abby wasn't a light weight, but she'd had so much to drink tonight, it would be a miracle if she made it in to work the next day. Patty had tried to stop her about an hour ago, primarily because drunk-Abby quickly became 'tell-everyone's-secrets-no-matter-what-the-consequence Abby.' But also, because it was a Tuesday, and this was crazy.

Holtzmann's eyes sparkled and her ears almost visibly perked up.

"Color me intrigued," she said leaning in towards Abby from across the table, "what kind of scheming are we doing tonight ladies?"

"Abby, don't do this!" Patty groaned, "Erin is gonna be _pissed._ "

"Too late!" Holtzmann bellowed, "I'm in too deep. You have to tell me, even if you have to kill me afterwards."

Abby laughed, "Erin's in loo-oooove!" She sing-songed, doing a little dance with her fingers.

"Erin, the physicist from across the hall?" Holtzmann felt a tiny bead of dread ball itself up in her stomach, and couldn't stop the small frown that showed itself on her features.

"Yeppp." Abby's eyes widened, "I wasn't supposed to tell anyone though, was I?" She turned her wide eyes to Patty.

"You done it now, babe." Patty says tossing a pretzel into her mouth. "This is all on you by the way. You better not drag me into this."

Holtzmann took a sip of her beer and leaned back against the booth. She didn't really have any reason to be upset... But she couldn't deny, even to herself, that she was a little bummed. She set her drink down, and ran her finger in circles around the rim of the glass.

"So, uh... Who's the lucky guy?" Holtzmann asked, and the words left a bitter taste in her mouth.

"I think you mean lucky gay." Abby snorted to herself. She giggled again, and then her laugh got louder, 

"Abby- that ain't even a good joke. Stop while you're ahead, okay?" Patty said reaching her hand across the table to set it on Abby's. She gave her a stern look, which Abby met with a rebuked gaze, obviously getting the message.

Holtzmann leaned forward putting her elbows on the table, her voice just a whisper, "No no- keep going... This is scheming I can get behind."

Abby and Holtzmann locked eyes and effectively blocked an exasperated Patty from their views. 

"Erin spends all of her time pining! All I'm saying is that we need to get her out of her classroom and into yours!"

Holtzmann's eyebrows shot up.

"Into... into mine?" She asked, turning to Patty to see if drunk-Abby's claims held any credibility. 

Patty shook her head, "It's all true. And I gotta go do damage control, now 'cause of you!" she said, turning to Abby. 

Abby laughed off Patty's anger, saying, "At least I didn't tell Holtzmann, right?"

Holtzmann took a second to think over the news, while Patty worked to gather up Abby's things. "This girl is  _hammered,_ I gotta take her home Holtzy."

"Before you go! Abby- give me the keys to your lab. When Erin calls you tomorrow morning, send her my way, okay?"

Abby agreed, and Holtzmann was lucky she was so out of it, otherwise she might have had to explain the plan that she didn't quite have yet. 

 

The next day, Erin comes into the school early, hoping to get a chance to look over the papers Patty had given her the day before. Flipping on the lights to her classroom, Erin let out as sharp gasp. Her classroom had looked normal until she walked into the lab area. There on the floor, lay her newest Van de Graaff generator, the belt laying crumpled beneath the sphere and the rollers resting a few feet away. Next to it lay three pocket oscilloscopes that had without a doubt seen better days. Looking around for the cause of the damage, Erin saw that the shelf they had been resting on had collapsed during the night causing it's contents to shatter onto the floor. 

"Oh my God..." Erin said closing her eyes, "It is 6:45 and I already need to go back to bed." She pulled out a stool at the lab bench nearest to her and set her head in her hands. _This is hundreds of dollars worth of equipment, what am I going to do?_ Erin thought to herself, _Oh God, what is Abby going to do when she finds out? Those DSO oscilloscopes were hers and she needed them next week for her lab..._ Pulling out her phone, Erin dials a familiar number and listens to the dial tone for minute, before hearing a groggy, 'Y'ello?' from the other side of the phone. 

"Abby- it's Erin. I just got into work and a  _bunch_  of stuff in our lab fell off of a shelf that broke during the night. What are we going to do?"

Abby was silent for a minute before asking, "What exactly was it?"

"Um.. my Van de Graaff and three of your DSO oscilloscopes. I think the other two are fine, I don't see them in the mess."

"Oh, that's an easy fix. Take 'em over to Holtz, she should know what to do."

"You want me to take them to Holtzmann?" Erin was certain she had misheard Abby, "The same one who has our hall smelling like a minefield accident most days?"

"Just trust me, she's a brilliant engineer. She's probably done this before. You'd be surprised how much science she puts into all the machines that she builds when she's not teaching sweaty 17 year olds about suspension."

 

Looking at the clock, Erin sees that it's a little after 7:00 now. Late enough that it wasn't impossible that Holtzmann would be in her shop, just improbable.

"Do you think she's here yet?"

"Most definitely." Abby says. "You wouldn't believe the ungodly hour this woman arrives to school at on a daily basis."

Erin says her goodbyes to Abby, assuring her that, yes, she will make sure to give Holtzmann all the necessary details and that, no, she will not spend the entire time trying to figure out where each of Holtzmann's curls ends and begins. (Erin meticulously avoided telling her that she's tried that already, her results have proved inconclusive.)

 

A few minutes later, Erin finds her self knocking on the propped open door to the school's auto mechanic's classroom. 

"Hello? Anyone here?" 

She stepped gingerly into the room, taking in every detail. It's by far the largest room in the school (although all of Mercado High School's STEM programs are well funded and maintained, so it's no surprised to Erin that Holtzmann has so much room in here.) To one side there's a messy mix of desks and tables in front of a dusty blackboard, with just a drawing of a complex engine in the center of it. There are stools and tool boxes every where you look, and four cars at various stations throughout the garage. Behind what looked to be a messy office made of all windows, Erin could see a room that looked like it was full of all sorts of strange machines and gadgets. 

"Ms. Holtzmann?" Erin calls, the name awkward on her tongue. Abby always just calls her Holtz or Holtzy if she was in a good mood, but Erin didn't know exactly what to call her. No amount of day dreams could have actually prepared her for the real feeling of knowing she was about to have to talk to Jillian in real life.

Walking further into the classroom, Erin marvels as she steps carefully over various pieces of machinery and piles of tools, and now she understands why this classroom is always on the cusp of another explosion. 

"Hello? Holtzmann? It's- it's Erin from across the hall? Abby sent me to come talk to you."

No reply. Erin kept walking, checking behind her to make sure she hadn't missed anything, and under workbenches because... well, how many hiding places could there be?

All of the sudden, she's frightened by a quiet "boo!" as Holtzmann slides out from under the car she's standing next to. 

Erin nearly drops the already disassembled Van de Graaff, feeling as though she just had a heart attack (but knowing she's fine), and lets out a breathy, "Jesus Christ, you scared me..."

The blonde lets out a snicker from where she's laying, "You look different upside down Dr. Gilbert." The smirk on her face does nothing to ease Erin's discomfort- both at being scared so easily, and realizing that she was going to have to make actual conversation with the woman she'd dreamed about the night before. 

Erin looks for a place to set down the generator, as Holtzmann slides further out from under the car and jumps up with a grin. She gives Erin a once over before she sticks her hand out in greeting, "Nice to finally officially meet you." The grin on her face is breathtaking, and Erin decides she might spend the rest of the year in this 'classroom' if it meant she could see it even one more time.

Erin's eyes flicker down to Holtzmann's gloved hands, taking in the brown leather that reached her knuckles, and the dirty nails that were short and well worn. Her head spun as she reached out, and she feels as though she's entered some sort of parallel universe. She's seen this before, she's imagined this before... But it's all so new at the same time. 

"So, what brings you to my side of the jungle?" Holtzmann asks, as she begins to remove her garage outfit- she starts with her goggles, pulling the yellow frames off over her large hair, and then the stained apron, ending with her brown gloves. Erin watches her carefully, and then remembers the reason that she came here.

"Ah- I came into work today, and I found my Van de Graaff broken. On the floor. Abby said you might... be able to take a look at it?"

Holtzmann's grin stretched further across her face, "You came to the right place then. Let me see what I can do. Follow me back- I'll show you the lab."

Erin gathers the pieces of the Van de Graaff back into her arms, and tries to balance the mental act of avoiding the obstacles on the ground, and trying not to be distract by the swing in the blonde's hips as she skillfully maneuvered her way around the lab. 

Erin's eyes are wide as she looks around the back room of Holtzmann's garage. It is covered floor to ceiling in machines she could never identify if she tried. Lights of every color blink on and off intermittently and she's in awe.

"Here, I'll take the generator for you. This should be a pretty easy fix..." her voice trailed off as she began to mutter things to herself. Then, without a word, she darts quickly into a back room. 

It's awkward for a moment, because Erin isn't quite sure what to do with herself between all of the machines. She traces her hand over the one closest to her.

"I wouldn't touch that if I was you- or any of it. 75% of the stuff in this room could kill you." Erin's hand rips from the machine as though she's been burnt, but Holtzmann just smiles at her. "Although, if we're being honest, I could do it the most efficiently." Holtzmann winks at her, and Erin swears she that her heart is beating so hard Patty can hear it in  _her_  classroom. Is Holtzmann flirting with her? Is she threatening her? And what does it say about Erin that she'd probably have the same reaction either way?

"What does all of it do?"

"Um... that one I'm not sure. As of right now- it's taken three of my wrenches, but I... don't know how. I've been giving her some space."

Erin couldn't help the smile that spread over her face. This wasn't what she expected at all from the woman across the hall, but she loved it. 

"What about that one?" She said, pointing across the room to a smaller box that was resting precariously over the edge of a table. 

"Oh, she's an oldie but a goodie. Most of the time, I use it to 3-D print miniature circuit boards? Sometimes I like to use it for art. Depends on the day really." Holtzmann leaned against the table closest to her, and gave Erin a once over again, and Erin felt like she'd been nailed to the floor. 

"Well boss, I should have those oscilloscopes and the generator in working order by tomorrow morning. Anything else I can do for you?" She said, a wicked grin spreading across her face, and her eyes seemed to be implying things Erin had only dreamed of.

"No, um... That should do it. Just ah- just let me know when you're finished. Thank you so much, by the way. Both Abby and I really appreciate it. These don't run cheap, so you're a huge help."

Jillian just nods and does a small two finger salute. "Glad I could be of service." 

With a timid wave, Erin leaves and returns to her classroom. She was going to have a hell of a day replaying that conversation in her head. 

 

The next day, Erin walks in to see the both the Van de Graaff and oscilloscopes in perfect working order on one of her and Abby's lab tables. Next to them is a bright blue sticky note etched with messy scribbled handwriting. 

_Hope I don't have to break anything else to see you again ;)  -Holtz_

 

 

 

  
  



End file.
